That’ll be easier said than done, Jo thought. She glanced at the two men, who were still alert. She locked eyes with Kelsey, then spun on her heels and jogged back through the woods.

Over the sounds of her soft footfalls on the dirt, she listened for anything else. It was a quiet evening, though, and she made it back to the road without encountering anyone. Her heart rate was up, and she was sweating when she passed by the sedan in the apartment complex parking lot. The driver wasn’t there, and she wondered where he was hiding. She didn’t think he’d been in the woods, but she couldn’t know for sure. Her palms grew sweaty at the thought of him seeing her with Kelsey. If he had, the special agent wouldn’t be able to help her now.

Jo unlocked the apartment door and slipped inside, briefly thinking about Dack. She’d talked to him before she’d agreed to work with Kelsey, and they had discussed her options, deciding she needed to move forward with the agent’s plans. Dack arranged to get the Ford Escape from her hotel, and he would be available if she needed him. He knew, however, that she couldn’t risk updating him unless absolutely necessary. Even though her phone was safe, Kline was likely monitoring her correspondence, and she didn’t want to draw any more suspicion to herself.

Jo got a drink and went into the bathroom. She peeled off her clothes and took a cool shower, then dressed in shorts and a T-shirt. She turned off the bedroom light and stood by the window, watching the sedan. Fifteen minutes later, she saw a figure in dark clothing slink between vehicles and up to the sedan. The door opened, but no dome light went on. The man got in and stayed put. She waited and watched. If he’d grown suspicious and alerted Kline, she didn’t think Kline would wait through the night to confront her. Still, she stood guard at the window for a long time.

Finally, she yawned and stretched, then went to bed.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Kline could tell that his boss was still frustrated. They were in his office downtown for a morning meeting, and JD’s tone was clipped. Kline briefly wondered if he’d overstepped his boundaries the previous night. If he’d pushed things too far, though, JD was smart enough to realize that he couldn’t get rid of him. Kline knew too much and was too valuable.

That didn’t mean his boss couldn’t stay angry.

“I trusted that you could handle everything,” JD said. “If you planned for all possibilities, then why are we worrying about this woman at the bank talking? It shouldn’t be a big deal.”

“It probably isn’t,” Kline said with more confidence than he felt. The air freshener in the room was strong, and he wrinkled his nose. It—along with everything else—was giving him a headache. “But until someone can talk to her to find out exactly what she told the police, we can’t be too sure.”

“Shouldn’t you have planned for something like this?”

Kline nodded. “Yes, and normally I’d be getting more information. I still don’t know what’s going on with my contact at the station.”

JD tapped his fingertips together as he contemplated Kline.

“What happens next?”

“I’m going to follow up with my guy,” Kline replied. “Just as a precaution. I want to make sure there isn’t anything we’ve missed.”

“Be careful,” JD said.

Kline looked at his boss, searching his face. Was JD finally getting it, realizing that the situation was serious? He hoped so. The last time, things had gone smoothly, and most of the times since then. Maybe they’d grown complacent—they were used to everything working out. Kline figured it would in this case, too. But he hadn’t planned on . . . whatever was going on with Sabrina. The woman shouldn’t have talked. Damek had said she’d been too scared. So why would she suddenly have gone to the police?

“Did you destroy the evidence?” Kline asked.

JD glanced out the window. “I did. You don’t need to concern yourself with that anymore.”

Kline couldn’t tell if he was telling the truth. The man didn’t often lie to him, but Kline knew how much that evidence meant to JD, that he got some kind of thrill keeping it around, looking at the stuff the reporter had on him.

“You’re sure it’s destroyed?” Kline asked. “There’s no way the drive could be accessed?”

JD flicked a hand at him. “The drive is demolished. I swear to you, there’s nothing.”

“Good,” Kline said, although he still wasn’t sure.

“How was the new driver’s first day?”

“It seemed to go well,” Kline said, accepting the change in subject. “Did Lydia say anything to you?”

His brow furrowed. “I didn’t see her until I went to bed. She seemed a little upset, but she wouldn’t tell me why, just that there was something with one of the ladies at the banquet. You know how that can go, though. There’s gossip at those things. I don’t know how Lydia handles herself with such grace. Anyway, I was up early this morning, and we didn’t talk. I don’t know what her plans are for today.”

“As far as I know, she’s at the house now,” Kline said.

“She’s got the driver with her,” JD said. “That’s one less thing to worry about.”

Kline wasn’t so sure. He had Jo under surveillance, and his man had told him that she’d gone for a run the previous evening, but that he couldn’t follow her without being detected. She’d been gone about thirty minutes, though, and had returned looking as if she’d been running, sweat on her face, breathing hard. She hadn’t done anything this morning except report to the mansion at the expected time.

“I’ll ask Lydia about the driver tonight,” JD said. “My guess is it will be fine. Lydia would’ve said something to me if she didn’t like her.” He glanced at his watch. “I need to get to a meeting. Keep me posted as you see fit.”

Kline nodded and left the office. He had a lot to do as well, following up with his people. As he walked down the hall, he messaged Damek. They needed to talk.

CHAPTER FORTY

Jo checked the back seat of the SUV, thinking about her morning.

She’d gotten up early, and the first thing she’d done was peek out the bedroom window to see if the apartment was under surveillance. The dark sedan she’d seen the previous evening was no longer in the same parking place, and it wasn’t anywhere she could see it from her window. She went to the living room window and checked, but she still didn’t spot it. However, after watching for a while, she thought she saw someone in a light-colored SUV parked down the block. The man was hunched down, so she almost missed him.

She didn’t think it was any federal agents. Kelsey and her team would be extremely cautious not to blow their cover and jeopardize their investigation. Or hers. If it was one of Kline’s people, though, she didn’t care. She didn’t have any clandestine plans today.

Jo showered and dressed in another pair of slacks and a blazer provided by Kline, and then she ate a quick breakfast and was parked outside the mansion at nine.

Kline had already gone, and so had JD. Although it hadn’t been on the schedule, Lydia had Jo drive her to a high-end shopping center, and on the way, they chatted. It felt as if Lydia was trying to get to know Jo better, asking more direct questions about her background, trying to build some trust. Jo was still careful with what she shared, but she did her best to appear open with her boss.

After shopping for a while, Lydia had lunch by herself while Jo grabbed a bite at a food court. One thing she’d noted: As she’d driven Lydia around, Jo hadn’t seen anyone tailing her. That, at least, was good.

When they’d returned to the mansion, Lydia hadn’t needed anything from Jo, so Jo found rags and car-cleaning supplies in a six-car garage, then went out to the SUV to make sure it was ready to go. She was killing time, because the SUV was spotless. Still, she made sure there would be nothing for Lydia to complain about, no dirt on the floor or mats, no smudges on the windows. While she worked, she studied the mansion, trying to figure out the layout. There were windows to the left of the main doors, where the living room was. Another room near the garage, and more rooms she couldn’t identify. She couldn’t be sure, but it looked as if there was an office or a library to the right of the portico.

JD’s? she wondered.

She couldn’t tell what other rooms were on that side of the house. There was no shade where she was working, and she wiped her brow as she finished, then gathered up the cleaning supplies and went inside. The mansion was enormous, and she had to traverse a series of hallways to get to the garage. She didn’t see anyone as she put everything away and went back into the house.

Jo didn’t know where all the staff was, so she tried the security room first. The door was closed. She knocked, and no one answered. She wasn’t sure if she believed Kline when he’d said there was no other security personnel, but if someone was in the office, she would’ve thought they’d answer. She waited a moment, then wandered into the kitchen, where the cook, Alice, was working on a grocery list.

“Do you need something to eat?” she asked.

Jo shook her head. “I ate while Lydia was at lunch.”

“How do you like things so far?”

She got a glass from a cupboard. “It’s fine, so far.”

Alice smiled. “The days would be too long for me. Plus, sometimes you’re just waiting around.”

Jo got water from a refrigerator dispenser and took a drink. “I guess so.” She glanced around. “Where is Lydia now?”

Alice pointed with a pen. “Out back. I’ll be heading to the grocery store in a minute. Is there anything special you’d like? I can get you whatever you want.”

Jo finished her drink and put the glass in the sink. “No, I’m fine. I’m not a picky eater.”